Technology: Google upgraded its Switch to Android iOS app because it appears to believe that more consumers are converting from iPhones to Android smartphones. It formerly only supported Pixels, but now it works with all Android 12 devices.
Google’s Switch to Android iOS app supports all Android 12 devices
According to GSM Arena, even though, to put it mildly, Google may overestimate the number of users who convert from iOS to Android, it sure is helpful to have such a convenient switching option.
Your new Android 12 phone can be wirelessly or via a cord connected to your iPhone. Simply download the Switch to Android app to your iPhone and follow the simple setup instructions to get going.
You can transfer your contacts, photos, and videos (including those in iCloud, if you ask Apple for a copy of your data), SMS, MMS, and iMessage texts and media, WhatsApp message history and media, and apps that are also available for Android and were offered for free on the App Store, custom wallpaper photos, call logs, alarms, device settings, and any DRM-free music you may have, as reported by GSM Arena.
Several companies and brands are reportedly abusing Google Messages’ RCS (Rich Communication Services) feature in India to bombard users with multiple ads, specifically selling personal loans and life insurances, without their consent.
Brands using Google Messages to bombard Indian users with unwanted ads
Multiple users took to social media platforms that RCS ads in Google Messages appear to be coming from “Verified Business” accounts and the frequency of such ads has picked up over the last few months in the country.
The RCS upgrades SMS with branding, rich media, interactivity and analytics. With RCS, businesses can bring branded, interactive mobile experiences, right to the default messaging app.
According to Google, millions of businesses rely on SMS to communicate with mobile consumers.
RCS Business Messaging upgrades SMS with branding, rich media, interactivity, and analytics. With RCS, businesses can bring branded, interactive mobile experiences, right to the native Android messaging app.
However, users in India now report a deluge of ads, primarily related to personal loans, gambling companies and life insurance, reports 9to5Google.
A query sent to Google India went unanswered.
One user complained on Twitter that he does not even have an active SIM card on his smartphone but even then, he was sent one of these personal loan ads from BankBazaar which is India’s largest fintech co-branded credit card issuer and online platform for free credit score.
“The amount of ads [Google Messages] it’s sending is crazy, multiple every day. Yes, these are NOT messages, these are ads being pushed by the app to Indian users. It’s the default messaging app on most Android phones here,” posted tech tipster Ishan Agarwal on Twitter.
Android Police reported that the problem has been around for about a year, and “complaints appear to be coming overwhelmingly from users based in India”.
“The trend initially blew up with Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Buddy Loan, and PolicyBazaar have turned out to be the biggest offenders,” the report claimed.
While several brands globally use messaging apps and SMS texts to advertise new products, these ads going on in India “are not necessarily the result of a user’s buying activity,” the reports noted.
Tech giant Google is preparing to purge nearly 900,000 apps, which have been abandoned or not been updated, from the Play Store.
According to Android Authority, the Google Play Store could see the number of available apps drop by nearly a third.
Google and Apple have both unveiled measures to deal with abandoned apps or apps that have not been updated in two years. In Google’s case, that amounts to 869,000 apps, while Apple has some 650,000.
According to CNET, Google is preparing to hide those apps, making it impossible for users to download them until the developers update them.
The main reason both companies are taking these measures is to protect their users’ security.
Older apps do not take advantage of changes in Android and iOS, new APIs, or new development methods that bring enhanced protection. As a result, older apps can have security flaws that newer apps don’t have, the report said.
